Some Early Iron Age Sites in Southern and Western Zambia

Abstract

The Victoria Falls region of southern Zambia is rich in archaeological material, particularly of the Early Iron Age. Excavations at Chundu and Zambezi Farm uncovered large collections of pottery, iron objects and other material culture. A sub-rectangular hut plan was discovered at Zambezi Farm. Pottery analysis associates these sites with Dambwa, and the ceramic seriation suggests that they form a unit as the third stage of a four-part Early Iron Age sequence proposed for the area. Survey reports are included for five sites north-west of Livingstone, Zambia and an excavation at Musya presents evidence of three occupations ranging from the eighth to the sixteenth centuries. Pottery from sites in western Zambia suggests a cultural complex related to but typological different from other early manifestations in the country. The pottery from Sefula Mission illustrates one of the sparse collections from this large portion of the country.